Rolls Royce launched its first showroom in India at Worli in central Mumbai, under the dealership of Navnit Motors on May 31, with the aim of tapping the growing consumer demand for luxury vehicles in the country. The Phantom super luxury sedan was unveiled.

Rolls Royce completes 100 years

Navnit Motors hopes to initially sell six to seven cars a year and then later ramp that up to 30 cars annually. Each car will be priced at Rs 35 million (Rs 3.5 crores).

Rolls Royce Motor Cars Ltd re-enter India after 50 years. Rolls Royces were once sold in India in the 1950s. Their main customers: India's maharajas. Many a royal garage once sported a sleek Phantom. And the Nizam of Hyderabad owned 50 Rolls.

The Hindu reported that Navnit Motors already has two customers and Yohan Poonawalla, a Pune-based industrialist, stud farm owner and car enthusiast, will be the first to receive a Rolls. 

Above: Colin Kelly, director, Rolls Royce (Asia Pacific) at the new showroom in Mumbai.
Photograph: Arun Patil